Digital Commons Network^™

Microplastic In Agricultural Tile Drainage And Stream Water During Periods Of High And Low Flow, Laurel Grace Mcginnis

Theses and Dissertations

Microplastic accumulation is one of the greatest changes to every ecosystem on Earth. Microplastics, < 5 mm in diameter, are an emerging contaminant of concern and are found across every habitat. Microplastics are directly released into the environment from industrial and personal care products or are a result of degradation and fragmentation of larger plastic debris. Microplastic contamination in the natural environment can have negative chemical and ecological effects on aquatic biota and humans. Rivers are an important transport pathway of microplastics from terrestrial to marine ecosystems. There is very little data on the abundance of microplastics in freshwater. To better understand the magnitude of microplastic contamination in freshwater, the concentration of microplastic in agricultural drainage tile outlets and stream waters in McLean County, Illinois during Spring and Summer (high and low flow periods) were measured. Grab samples were collected from five tile and four stream sites across 4 watersheds. Microplastic concentrations at each site were compared using ArcGIS. Microplastics are present in both agricultural drainage tile outlets and agricultural streams during Spring and Summer with approximately 80% of the microplastic particles being fibers. We did find a significant difference in microplastic concentrations between Spring and Summer but no significant difference between tile and stream sites within seasons. Our results suggest tile outlets and the tiles themselves may be a significant source of microplastics to streams and may lead to substantial inputs to downstream systems like drinking water reservoirs. KEYWORDS: microplastic; contaminant; rivers; freshwater; agricultural drainage tile; drinking water reservoirs

Literate Activity Research And Narrative Analysis As Frameworks For Educational Change: An Examination Of Writing Instruction In Two Alternative Education Programs, Leslie Rae Hancock

Theses and Dissertations

How are narratives, as mediating cultural tools within activity systems, influencing or shaping the ways in which alternative high school teachers are designing, developing, and implementing their writing instruction? This thesis seeks to answer this guiding research question by investigating the writing pedagogies and praxis of two Illinois alternative school teachers. Using literate activity research and narrative analysis as guiding frameworks for the research, a qualitative study was conducted to examine participants’ activity systems and their uptake of two broader cultural narratives: the “at-risk student” and “general writing skills instruction” narratives. Data was collected over the course of the study …

Teaching English Language Varieties: Promoting Linguistic And Educational Change Through A Critical Multicultural Pedagogical Approach In The “Introduction To Linguistics ” Course, Lyudmila N. Belomoina

Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation introduces and analyzes a critical multicultural pedagogical approach to the introductory linguistics course focused on the introduction to the main levels of analysis within linguistics (phonetics, phonology, syntax, semantics, and pragmatics) in the context of standardized English; a nonstandardized English language variety, African American English (AAE); and a World English, Indian English (IE). The approach, which is based on the tenets of critical pedagogy and multicultural education, is centered on language variation and intended for K-12 future language arts teachers (and writing instructors at the college level) with the goal to teach them how to develop linguistically informed …

Rails At Different Scales: Ecological And Evolutionary Drivers Of Vocal Behavior In Rallidae, Daniel Lorenz Goldberg

Theses and Dissertations

Animal signals used for communication, such as vocalizations and other sounds, are not produced in a vacuum, but evolve under a suite of selective pressures, including environmental and social factors, sender and receiver physiology, habitat features, and predation pressure, as well as phylogenetic history and morphological constraints. However, the extent to which these pressures have shaped the calling behavior of the avian family Rallidae is relatively unknown, despite the variety of different vocalizations of rails and the extent to which they use duetting and exhibit conspecific attraction. Here I answer a series of questions related to the adaptive drivers of …

Algal Biodiversity Survey Of The Middle Chattahoochee River Using Dna Metabarcoding, Amanda Howell

Theses and Dissertations

Aquatic plants play vital roles in water systems by providing ecological services, and one group that is understudied is algae. Algae play a crucial role in water systems as bioindicators and primary producers. They can be challenging to identify with the naked eye, so researchers have been using DNA metabarcoding, where DNA belonging to specific taxa can be isolated and identified from water samples. The objective of this study was to conduct an algal biodiversity survey on the middle Chattahoochee River system in Georgia. Water samples (1L) were filtered and sent to RTL Genomics for sequencing and processing; the data …

Defining Compulsory Academic Genres: A Feminist Rhetorical Interrogation Of Required Institutional Practices, Courtney Cox

Theses and Dissertations

Teachers, students, and administrators already know that universities were, and still are, developed for a certain type of privileged student. Institutional genres are conceptualized in kind: a response to idealized situations within the framework of messy institutions—spaces where many students first learn how to live on their own, grappling with necessary literacies that exist within and beyond the classroom. Because of their institutional positioning, these genres form systems of power that affect students in different ways. Implicit in institutional communication are mechanisms of hegemonic oppression that may dissuade women and other marginalized individuals from taking action and subverting the norms …

#Blackfemaleteachersmatter: The Experiences Of Three African American Female Teachers Who Left The Classroom During Their Induction Years, Ashlye Victoria Wilkerson

Theses and Dissertations

This study captured the lived experiences of three African American, female classroom teachers who left the profession within three years of beginning their careers. The main goal that led this research was to center the perspectives of African American women in the conversation about teacher retention, turnover, and attrition percentages that plague the field of education. The primary questions that guided this study were: (1) “What can be learned from the life stories of former African American female teachers who left the teaching profession from South Carolina public classrooms during their induction years?”, (2) “What do their life stories reveal …

Role Of Estrogen In Regulating Diet-Induced Obesity In Females, Ahmed Aladhami

Theses and Dissertations

Menopause puts a female at risk for several chronic diseases, including an increased risk of obesity. Estrogens are major sex hormones of females that dramatically decrease during menopause. Several murine studies have established the crucial role of estrogen and estrogen receptor alpha (ERα) on energy homeostasis, glucose metabolism, and insulin action. However, previous works have produced contradicting findings, hence, further work is needed to optimize better outcomes. Therefore, my dissertation focuses on optimizing and characterizing different estrogen-deficient models, as well as using novel double transgenic inducible and tissue-specific models that overexpress aromatase (estrogen producing enzyme) and estrogen receptor isomers alpha …

Study Of The Effect Of B-Cell-Intrinsic Mhcii Antigen Presentation On Germinal Center B Cell Evolution Using The Brainbow Mouse Model, Nia Hall

Theses and Dissertations

Major histocompatibility complex class II (MHCII) are molecules that are essential for B cell activation, as well as clonal competition among activated B cell clones during germinal center (GC) reactions. However, it is unknown to what extent MHCII drives the selection of some clones over others. This is of particular importance since MHCII is highly polymorphic with the ability to indirectly alter gutmicrobiome composition by altering the immunoglobulin A (IgA) repertoire. To study this, we utilized a novel triple-transgenic mouse model to assess how B-cellintrinsic MHCII influences GC responses and GC clonal diversity, with an eyeforward to understanding the relevance …

Age-Dependent Increase In Tyrosine Level Depletes Tyrosyl-Trna Synthetase And Causes Neuronal Oxidative Dna Damage In Alzheimer’S Disease, Megha Jhanji

Theses and Dissertations

Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is the most common form of dementia, and it currently affects more than 50 million people worldwide. Much of the population develop late-onset AD after 65 and constitute more than 95% of the cases. Currently, there is no definitive cure or way to slow down the progression of this disease that addresses the neurodegeneration and loss of cognitive functions. Although the underlying cause of AD is still unknown, the “amyloid cascade hypothesis” attributed it to the aggregation of amyloid beta (AU+03B2) peptides and has been the focus for targeting most disease-modifying drugs in clinical trials. However, emerging …

Impaired Metabolic Flexibility In A Mouse Model Of Leigh Syndrome, Richard Sterling Mccain Jr

Theses and Dissertations

Metabolic dysfunction burdens tissues with high energy demands, particularly the brain. Leigh syndrome is a mitochondrial encephalopathy stemming from genetic defects in the electron transport chain. Leigh syndrome patients develop lactic acidosis, ataxia, bilateral necrotizing lesions in the brainstem and basal ganglia, lesion microgliosis, and eventually death due to respiratory failure. The NADH dehydrogenase [ubiquinone] iron-sulfur protein 4 (NDUFS4) knockout mouse is an established model of Leigh syndrome due to impaired assembly of mitochondrial Complex I that develops motoric deficits and necrotizing lesions in the brainstem vestibular nuclei and olfactory bulb. In addition to the Complex I-derived bioenergetics defect, altered …

The Immune Modulatory Role Of Endocannabinoid Anandamide To Suppress Inflammation Through Regulation Of Microrna And Microbiome, Muthanna Ali Sultan

Theses and Dissertations

Cannabinoids are group of compounds that exerts their anti-inflammatory action through activation of CB1 and CB2 receptors and other minor receptors. In the current study, we investigated the effect of Anandamide (AEA) on Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome (ARDS) induced by exposure to Staphylococcus Enterotoxin B (SEB) intranasally. We found that C57BL/6 mice treated with AEA showed improvement in the clinical functions of the lungs, accompanied by a decrease in the infiltration of inflammatory cells in the lung tissue, and a decrease in the secretion of pro-inflammatory cytokines. Furthermore, AEA regulated the miRNA profile of the mononuclear cells in the lungs …

Development Of A Converging-Channel Drop Tower For Sphere Symmetric Isolated Single Droplet Combustion, Nicholas Alexander Demaio

Theses and Dissertations

The dawn of a new Space Age is upon us; Microgravity combustion of hydrocarbon fuels is a popular method of research and characterization. This allows for a one-dimensional analysis by suppressing the buoyancy forces produced by gravity and the large temperature differential between the flame boundary and the surrounding air. The current testing methods are expensive and require extensive preparation on the researchers behalf. There is a need to investigate an alternative method that is inexpensive, repeatable, and comparable to the other approaches that coincides with the literature.

A low-cost converging-channel drop tower was designed and fabricated for sphero-symmetric single …

A Project-Based Learning Approach To Community-Based Learning: Action Research To Explore Transformative Change In 1st Year Occupational Therapy Students’ Awareness About Contextual Barriers, Occupational Justice, And Advocating For Community Health And Wellness, Patricia Ann Wisniewski

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this action research was to evaluate the effectiveness of implementing reflexive photography as a means for a transformative community-based learning (CBL) experience. CBL is an experiential teaching pedagogy that helps prepare college students for a rapidly changing and diverse society that fosters social, health, and cultural awareness about individuals and populations. Students engage collaboratively within the local community to help solve societal problems.

This study focused on three research questions, each exploring how a reflexive photography project (RPP): (a) changes how students view occupational justice, (b) influences students awareness about contextual barriers that may impact community residents …

Sex Differences And Neuroimmune Effects Of Microglial Response In The Mesolimbic Reward Pathway In Nicotine Substance Use Disorder, Erin Leigh Anderson

Theses and Dissertations

Smoking remains the leading cause of morbidity and mortality in the United States, with less than 5% of smokers attempting to quit succeeding. This is due to the unpleasant withdrawal symptomology, which includes affective symptoms, such as irritability, weight gain, anxiety, and severe craving among others, as well as the cognitive effects, such as difficulty concentrating. This low smoking cessation success rate is also thought to be due to the long-lasting sensitization of nicotinic acetylcholine receptors (nAChRs) leading to long-term neuroadaptations in the brain’s reward system and alterations in synaptic plasticity that occur following chronic nicotine exposure and withdrawal. Glial …

Bayesian Calibration Of The Icrp Zirconium Biokinetic Model And Use Of Canned Priors For The Evaluation Of Bioassay, Thomas Raymond Labone

Theses and Dissertations

The International Commission on Radiological Protection (ICRP) publishes biokinetic models that relate measurements of radioactive material in the body and excreta (bioassay) to the amount of the material taken into the body (intake). Given the intake and the biokinetic model, radiation dose to organs and tissues can be calculated. The ICRP approximates the biokinetics of radioactive materials in the body with compartmental models expressed mathematically as a system of ordinary differential equations, for which they provide point estimates of the rate constants. Inaccurate estimates of intake and radiation dose can result in cases where the biokinetics of an individual differ …

Optimization And Application Of Electrochemical Probes For Neurotransmitter Detection, Colby E. Witt

Theses and Dissertations

The brain is a complex matrix that is difficult to study. Signaling molecules, neurotransmitters, are constantly being released and sequestered back into neurons within milliseconds to facilitate communication and normal function, a process called neurotransmission. There are few analytical techniques available to selectively probe such a dynamic system, and even fewer can detect these discrete changes in real-time. In order to make robust measurements in the brain you need speed, sensitivity, selectivity and small probe size, which are encompassed by fast-voltammetry with microelectrodes. Traditional fast-voltammetry at carbon fiber microelectrodes (fast-scan cyclic voltammetry (FSCV)) requires background subtraction to overcome the large …

The Role Pde11a4 Signaling And Compartmentalization In Social Behavior, Kaitlyn Pilarzyk

Theses and Dissertations

People tend to be social by nature. Being socially connected not only helps people live longer and healthier lives, but being an engaged and contributing member of society strengthens our communities overall. Maintaining intact social behaviors is key to maintaining this wellbeing, with disruptions negatively affecting both mental and physical health. Indeed, social isolation and feelings of loneliness can significantly increase a person’s risk of premature death, heart disease, and stroke as well as depression, anxiety, suicide, and dementia. Maintaining the ability to create and store social memory with age is, therefore, key to maintaining proper social behaviors. Unfortunately, individuals …

Impact Of Acetylcholine On Internal Pathways To Basal Amygdala Pyramidal Neurons, Tyler Daniel Anderson-Sieg

Theses and Dissertations

The basolateral nuclear complex of the amygdala (BNC) – consisting of the lateral (LA), basolateral (BL), and basomedial nuclei (BM) – detects salient environmental stimuli (cue-detection) and motivates appropriate behavioral responses to their implied meaning (cue-guided behavior) via a precise pattern of internal circuitry. Glutamatergic signals representing environmental stimuli enter the LA and split into parallel streams that activate pyramidal neurons (PNs) in the anterior and posterior BL (BLa and BLp), which putatively mediate negative and positive emotions, respectively. The BL is the most densely innervated target of the cholinergic basal forebrain (CBF) and ACh transients (phasic ACh) in cortex …

Impact Of Acetylcholine On Amygdala Network Oscillations, Joshua Xavier Bratsch-Prince

Theses and Dissertations

The ability to appropriately respond to and store memories of emotionally salient events is a critical feature of survival. The basolateral amygdala (BLA) is a temporal lobe structure that is essential in mediating emotional behaviors, learning, and memory. Important to circuit function are synchronized neuronal oscillations. Different oscillatory signatures are implicated in mediating different aspects of behavior and learning and memory processes: theta frequency (3-12 Hz) oscillations represent “online” states and are important for information encoding and learning, and sharp wave ripples (SWRs) represent more “offline” states that are important for the consolidation of memory. In the BLA, both of …

Creating Crescent: Using Youth Participatory Action Research (Ypar) And Public Media To Promote Epistemic Agency Among Black Girls In South Carolina, Salandra Bowman

Theses and Dissertations

This study uses womanist methodology and youth participatory action research (YPAR), centering the ways of knowing of Black girls, with a focus on epistemic agency, to engage Black girls in the production of educational media. Such a study is necessary because Black girls are underrepresented in educational media, overrepresented in cases of school discipline, and overrepresented in reports of physical violence in schools. As public media is recognized as a transformative intervention in improving learning outcomes for children, addressing the underrepresentation of Black girlhood therein creates opportunities to address these intersecting issues and create humanizing educational media for all students. …

Real Time Neurochemical Analysis Of The Brain For Pharmacological Treatments In Mood Disorders And Neurodegeneration, Anna Marie Buchanan

Theses and Dissertations

The monoamine, serotonin, is an important modulator in the central nervous system. It is believed to participate in a variety of functions ranging from moderating stress, promoting brain plasticity, and regulating sleep and appetite. Dysfunction of the serotonergic system has also been implicated in mood disorders and neurodegenerative diseases. While serotonin is of great interest to the research community, real-time in vivo serotonin dynamics remain understudied. This is because direct measurement of fast serotonergic transmission is analytically challenging. In 2009, the Hashemi lab pioneered the direct measurement of endogenously evoked serotonin using a method called fast scan cyclic voltammetry (FSCV). …

The Criminalization Of Hiv And Hiv Stigma, Deanna Cann

Theses and Dissertations

In an effort to contain the HIV epidemic, lawmakers implemented various pieces of legislation across the United States, including laws that prohibit people living with HIV (PLHIV) from engaging in various behaviors without first disclosing their HIV-status. Public health scholars claim that this criminalization of HIV serves to increase stigma toward PLHIV, rather than prevent its transmission. Limited research has supported a connection between HIV exposure laws and increased stigma toward PLHIV. Still, researchers have yet to establish a causal relationship, and we know little regarding the mechanisms through which these laws serve to reproduce stigma. This study aims to …

Land, Racial Formations, And Power: Exploring The Network Of Power Relationships During Climate Change Planning In Coastal South Carolina, Teresa Norman

Theses and Dissertations

Climate change projections for the coastline of South Carolina predict that by mid-century there will be around 1.2 feet of sea level rise, and potentially up to 4 feet of rise by 2100. Additionally, climate change is linked to intensified hurricanes, a hazard for the South Carolina coastline every year. Both of these scenarios result in increases in the regularity and severity of coastal flooding, making the threat of permanent or temporary displacement (relocation) from coastal lands a reality. This is a particularly pressing matter for African American communities already made vulnerable by the long history of racial discrimination in …

Food Choice Decision-Making Among School-Going Adolescents Amidst The Nutrition Transition In Urban Accra, Ghana, Krystal Krsna Rampalli

Theses and Dissertations

Like many countries of the world, Ghana is experiencing a nutrition transition and rising non-communicable diseases. Adolescents are susceptible to diet-related health risks as they experience significant physical and psychological changes, which are happening in tandem with food environment changes, including widespread proliferation of large portion and package sizes of energy-dense, nutrient-poor foods. Both local and multinational food and beverage companies have encouraged consumption of their products through various marketing tactics targeted directly to adolescents. Some of these tactics include the use of characters or celebrity endorsement, promotional discounts, and appeal to sociocultural values, including messages about body size preferences. …

A Novel Model To Study Adipose-Derived Stem Cell Differentiation, Austin N. Worden

Theses and Dissertations

The use of three-dimensional (3D) culture systems (hydrogels) and adipose-derived stem cells (ADSCs) in regenerative medicine to advance early-stage investigation and modeling of the mechanisms of diseases, treatments, targets, etc. has recently increased. ADSCs, specifically, are utilized due to their innate programming during embryogenesis and in adult tissues in addition to their ability to differentiate into mesodermal, endodermal, and ectodermal cell-specific lineages. Of importance is that these advancements do not involve a model specimen (i.e. mice or rats) and simulate the numerous conflicting signals a migrating cell is exposed to in vivo such as chemokines, extracellular matrix (ECM), growth factors, …

Value Creation Mechanisms In The Contemporary Art Market, Niharika Goel

Theses and Dissertations

As marketing theory has evolved, value co-creation has taken center stage in exchange processes. The goal of this dissertation, situated at the intersection of market systems and the visual art market, is to generate a deeper understand of the fundamentals of value co-creation at the level of practice, in part because the visual art world is organized as a Bourdieusian field of cultural production with its own set of rules, narratives, individuals and institutions. While individuals can effectively position themselves in this field to accumulate social capital, they are inextricably linked to others. Hence, it is imperative to understand the …

The Influence Of Adhd On Concussion In Ncaa College Athletes, Brett Steven Gunn

Theses and Dissertations

Evidence suggests attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) may be associated with an increased incidence of concussion; however, no study has cross-sectionally (Aim 1) and longitudinally (Aim 2) assessed the associations of ADHD with concussion. Additionally, there is reason to expect cognitive alterations following concussion in athletes with ADHD. Further, there is currently no study that has evaluated the influence of common medications often taken to mitigate some symptoms of ADHD, such as methylphenidate and amphetamines. Therefore, we sought to longitudinally assess cognitive profiles (Aim 3) of athletes with ADHD taking medication (ADHD+Rx) and not taking medication (ADHD_uRx) at baseline, 24-48 hours …

Let’S Be Friends: Examining Consumer Brand Relationships Through The Lens Of Brand Personality, Engagement, And Reciprocal Altruism, Daniel D. Haun

Theses and Dissertations

Brands have always exuded personality and status to consumers in order to promote a competent impression and induce positive perceptions and behaviors (Griskevicius, et al., 2007). In order for individuals to identify with brands, the brands must become more personable by consciously embodying a specific personality trait. Research has found that when a brand embodies a personality, there is an associated increase in consumer preference and usage (Sirgy, 1982), purchase choices for that brand (Ha & Janda, 2014; Gordon et al., 2016; Guèvremont & Grohmann, 2013; Swaminathan et al., 2009), and consumer preference and brand loyalty (Louis & Lombart, 2010; …

Assessing Stakeholder Needs And Preferences For Coastal Swimming Advisories In Charleston, South Carolina, Zachary Haynes Hart

Theses and Dissertations

The Beaches Environmental Assessment and Coastal Health (BEACH) Act was established in 2000 to reduce the risk of illness among recreational users of beaches in the United States. Specifically, the Act provides coastal states and territories with annual grants to conduct routine water quality monitoring at beaches and to notify the public when pathogen levels exceed safe thresholds. Many coastal states use beach signs, agency websites, and press releases to notify the public, but a 2011 evaluation of the public notification component of the BEACH Act found that few states are choosing methods based on target audience characteristics and interests. …